Stopping the carp in their tracks isn’t an easy task, but it’s something that must be done before they invade even larger bodies of water, like the Great Lakes, and become firmly planted in our ecosystem.

But officials say their complicated system set up in Illinois will hopefully curb the craving carp.

“We have a ladder system, where they’re shut off so they can’t get through. So it’s almost like a two, three, four defenses. That if for some reason, our first defense line doesn’t work, which it should, we have another one and another one,” said Senator Donnelly.

But with no natural predators in North America, and almost insatiable appetites, it’s a teeter totter in this eco-war.

Experts say it’s crucial to prevent these carp from entering the great lakes.

Once established in an ecosystem they are virtually impossible to eradicate.

Adult Asian Carp have no natural predators in North America.

And females lay approximately half a million eggs each time they spawn.